


Babysitting Woes

by rotKaiserin



Series: modern joker [2]
Category: Joker Game (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Attempt at Humor, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Present Tense
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-28
Updated: 2016-08-28
Packaged: 2018-08-11 11:27:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7889884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rotKaiserin/pseuds/rotKaiserin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's out of the kindness of his heart and the hope that Miyoshi doesn't kill him that Kaminaga agrees to watch Emma for Amari.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Babysitting Woes

**Author's Note:**

> hello again!! o/
> 
> I didn't expect to write a new fic so soon haha usually I'm burnt out after publishing one... I was actually working on _another_ Kamiyoshi fic but this idea hit me harder than the realization I start college in four days _(:3 」∠)_ so!! I did this (￣ω￣)ゞ
> 
> tbh Kamiyoshi doesn't strike me as the kind of couple to have kids but man *clutches chest* family fluff is my jam :') so I made it work haha
> 
> anyways, this is crossposted on my [tumblr](http://dollofdeath.tumblr.com/post/149580091732/babysitting-woes-11) ^o^ thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy~

"Hey, babe."

 

"...Yes?"

 

"Emma's gonna be staying with us for a little while."

 

Miyoshi pauses right in the middle of his morning routine. His arm is raised with a bottle of hairspray in hand, ready to volumize and fluff his hair. Laid out on his vanity are all his beauty products, lined up in order of use. To top it off, he's still wearing his sheet mask. It would've been hilarious, Kaminaga thinks, if not for the death glare he sends him.

 

"Excuse me?" While he keeps his tone light, Kaminaga hears the underlying coldness and shudders.

 

"Amari is going on a business trip," he starts slowly. "And he asked me if Emma could stay with us until he gets back." He watches for a reaction. There is none. "So I said okay."

 

Kaminaga finishes it off with unenthusiastic jazz hands and a sheepish smile. Miyoshi and kids go together about as well as Hatano's cat and Tazaki's pigeons, but he figures Miyoshi treats her well enough whenever she's around. At the very least, he doesn't talk shit about her unlike the kids he sees on the streets.

 

A frown mars Miyoshi's face as he sets down his hairspray.

 

"When did that happen?"

 

"Like two days ago."

 

"And you're just telling me now?"

 

"I didn't want to interrupt you with such a... _delicate_ matter while you were painting."

 

Miyoshi crosses his arms.

 

"Why can't the others take care of her?"

 

Counting them off on his fingers, Kaminaga says, "Tazaki is visiting his family, Hatano and Jitsui are busy studying for exams, Odagiri isn't feeling well, Fukumoto is taking care of him, and Sakuma is on duty this weekend."

 

"Tsk."

 

"You don't even have to do anything!" Kaminaga hastily adds. "I'll take care of her while she's here."

 

"But you're working at the studio."

 

"I'll bring her with me."

 

"What about the dog?"

 

"I told Amari the building doesn't allow pets so he's leaving Frate with a sitter."

 

"When is she coming?"

 

"Tonight." If looks could kill, Kaminaga would've died right there and then. "She'll be staying until Monday morning."

 

Miyoshi simply turns back to the mirror and aggressively resumes his routine.

 

"Fine."

 

Kaminaga lets out the breath he was holding, but he doesn't let the conversation end there.

 

"Frowning gives you wrinkles, you know."

 

"So does living with an idiot."

 

"Wow, so cranky~"

 

He walks over to him and hugs him from behind, resting his chin on his shoulder. Miyoshi leans into his touch.

 

"It's only like three days."

 

"I know."

 

"And Emma is a good girl. I'm sure she'll behave properly."

 

"I know." Miyoshi sighs. "I know. I just don't need more trouble on my hands. I'm already taking care of one kid."

 

"Oi!" Kaminaga squeezes him.

 

Wriggling his way out of his arms, Miyoshi smirks.

 

"You're gonna be late to work," he says, taking off his sheet mask.

 

A look at the clock tells Kaminaga that he's right.

 

"Crap." He kisses Miyoshi's cheek. "I'll see you later then."

 

"See you."

 

-

 

Amari arrives promptly at eight o' clock with Emma in his arms. Kaminaga answers the door while Miyoshi stands to the side, doing his best to remain civil.

 

"Hey, guys. I'm sorry about this, but I really appreciate it." His apology is more towards Miyoshi than to Kaminaga.

 

"Not a problem! We're happy to have her."

 

Miyoshi snorts, but Amari doesn't seem to hear it.

 

"Say hello to Uncle Kaminaga and Uncle Miyoshi, Emma."

 

"Hi, Uncle Kaminaga. Hi, Uncle Miyoshi." She waves at them, giving a shy smile.

 

It's almost like an arrow strikes through Kaminaga's heart, but he has to resist fawning over her. Beside him, Miyoshi eases up.

 

"Hey Emma~ Let's have lots of fun together, all right?"

 

"Okay!"

 

"Hello Emma," Miyoshi says politely. He steps back, waving them in. "You should come inside."

 

"I can't stay too long actually," Amari says, setting Emma down. She walks in slowly, as if testing the safety of the house. "The cab's waiting downstairs."

 

He hands Kaminaga her belongings and some sheets of paper to Miyoshi.

 

"Those are some emergency contacts in case you can't reach me."

 

Miyoshi leafs through the papers. There's five of them filled out back-to-back.

 

"This list is quite extensive, Amari."

 

"It doesn't hurt to be too careful, eh?"

 

"If that's what helps you sleep at night."

 

"Well we won't need that anyways because we'll be taking great care of her!" Kaminaga gives a thumbs up.

 

"Heh, I trust you two. It's just that this is the first time I'll be away from her for a long time, so I'm kind of worried."

 

Kaminaga claps a hand on his shoulder.

 

"She'll be here waiting for you. Just do your best and come home quickly, yeah?"

 

Amari places his hand on top of Kaminaga's and smiles.

 

"Thanks again."

 

Turning to Emma, Amari crouches down to talk to her. As they say their goodbyes, Kaminaga and Miyoshi share a look. It's hard to believe that this is the same man who was involved in love scandals back in college. They're still not even sure as to how Amari became Emma's father. The guy takes a trip to Hawaii and returns with her and Frate as if it's nothing. They've learned to accept that it's one of the many unanswered questions of the universe.

 

Amari hugs Emma one last time and he waves goodbye to them. As Kaminaga closes the door, he swears to God that he sees Amari tear up. Fatherhood is amazing. Or terrifying. He isn't sure yet, but observing it through Amari has been an experience.

 

He turns around to see that Miyoshi's already walking back to their bedroom and Emma's staring at the door. Looking between the two, he decides he can deal with Miyoshi later.

 

"All right, Emma! You ready to have some fun?"

 

She hesitates for a moment, but then smiles.

 

"Yeah!"

 

* * *

 

 

Kaminaga and Emma are up bright and early the next morning, preparing to go to his studio. Much like he thought, Emma gets ready with ease and without complaints. He's got this babysitting thing down, Kaminaga thinks, but Miyoshi tells him to keep an eye on her. A _very_ close eye on her.

 

"Emma, do you have everything?"

 

She grips the straps of her backpack.

 

"Yep."

 

"Do you remember the rules?"

 

"Yep."

 

"And what are they?"

 

"Don't play with the equipment. Don't cause a ruckus."

 

"Good girl!" He pats her head, eliciting a giggle from her. "Ready to go?"

 

"Yep!" She says but her smile falters.

 

"Is something wrong, kiddo?"

 

"What about Uncle Miyoshi?"

 

He follows her gaze to the closed door of their bedroom, where Miyoshi's going through his morning routine.

 

"Uncle Miyoshi's busy working on a commission."

 

"Co...mission?"

 

"Yeah, 'commission.' Someone's paying Uncle Miyoshi to make a picture for them."

 

She perks up.

 

"Can I see it?"

 

"Maybe if you ask him later, he'll let you."

 

"Really?"

 

 _Hell_ _no_ is his first thought, but he keeps that to himself.

 

"We'll see about that, but let's go now. If you get downstairs before me, I'll give you some cookies."

 

"Oh!"

 

And like that, she bolts out the door.

 

-

 

The work day goes by. Families come in for their portraits, couples come in to have their baby's pictures taken, and others come in to book him for events. It's the same old, same old, but Kaminaga doesn't tire of it. There's something special about being the one to capture and preserve such moments. All the while, Emma sits in the back playing some dolphin game on her iPad, making small talk occasionally. So far, so good.

 

Business slows down a bit, so Kaminaga takes the time to start editing the orders he's gotten so far. He loads them onto the computer, takes out the paper work from his first customer, and goes over their order. His eyes scan for their photographs and once he finds them, he checks them out. He smiles at the sight of the family -- a mother and father with their children and their children's children. Everything looks fine when suddenly he catches sight of red hair and blue eyes.

 

Kaminaga sits up, blinking.

 

"What the hell?"

 

He rubs his eyes and yep, she's definitely there. He flips back and forth among the pictures, and all of them are missing the familiar red haired, blue eyed girl save for that one. But the question is how did Emma even get there in the first place? As far as he knows, she's been in her seat the whole day. He glances over at her, and she's focused on her iPad, vigorously tapping away at it. Turning back to the screen, he shrugs it off. This picture's not part of the request, so it's not a problem.

 

That is, until he gets to his second order. Again, Emma shows up in one of them. He ruffles his hair and now his focus shifts. He reviews all of the pictures and without a fail, she's in one in every batch. It's not like she's doing anything intrusive. No, she's just standing behind the subjects and smiling. Kaminaga has to admit she looks great in all of them. _She must've gotten her good looks from Amari,_ he thinks before remembering they're not blood related at all (or so goes the most accepted of their group's Emma theories). Well. She's still very cute. But cute or not, she's not supposed to be in there in the first place.

 

"Emma."

 

"Yes, Uncle Kaminaga?"

 

"Come here."

 

She puts her iPad down and trots over, her face one of an angel.

 

"I want you to look at something, okay?"

 

"Okay."

 

He lifts her up and sits her on his lap.

 

"Look carefully."

 

The whole time he's showing her the images, she makes no movements nor any reactions.

 

"Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

 

"...Pretty pictures?"

 

He tries not to laugh. This is supposed to be serious, he tells himself.

 

"True, but what do they have in common?"

 

Her response takes longer this time, but she says "Me!"

 

"That's right. And why are you there?"

 

"Because I wanted to take pictures too."

 

She says it so innocently that Kaminaga's lips quirk up. Nonetheless, he adjusts their position so he's looking at her eye-to-eye.

 

"Emma, what are the rules I told you?"

 

"Don't play with the equipment. Don't cause a ruckus."

 

"Yeah, and do you know what you did wrong?"

 

As she thinks, Emma bites her lip. She shakes her head.

 

"You're not supposed to be in these pictures. You've caused a ruckus."

 

"But no one got hurt."

 

"Even then, what you did is disrespectful to those people and makes my job harder."

 

She shrinks in on herself.

 

"I'm sorry," she says voice low. Kaminaga hears the tears threatening to come out, oh God --

 

"As long as you understand what you did was wrong, then it's fine." He rubs her back, soothing her. "But if you can't follow the rules, you're gonna have to stay with Uncle Miyoshi."

 

"Okay!"

 

What.

 

"What."

 

"It's boring here, Uncle Kaminaga."

 

He's slightly offended, but he sees where she's coming from. Surely sitting in the back the whole day can't be a lot of fun. In fact, he doesn't mind that Emma doesn't want to stay with him (okay, he minds a little bit. But only a little bit). It's Miyoshi he's worried about.

 

"Are you sure about that? You're gonna have to stay with Uncle Miyoshi," he says again, putting much more emphasis on his words.

 

"I'm sure. I wanna see Uncle Miyoshi's painting."

 

There's a sinking feeling in Kaminaga's stomach, but he pays no attention to it.

 

"You're really sure?" He tries one last time.

 

"Really, _really_ sure."

 

"Ah..." He grows numb. She looks at him, her eyes big and unblinking. "Well... after today you can stay with him."

 

"Yay!"

 

So. He lies. He's not worried about Miyoshi, not really. It's more like he's worried about what Miyoshi will do to him when he breaks the news to him. Kaminaga's not religious, but he prays.

 

-

 

Kaminaga entertains Emma for the rest of the day and it goes by without a hitch. By the time night rolls around, he figures he has enough courage to tell him he can't bring Emma to work anymore. The words die on his lips as soon as he sees Miyoshi busy at work, fingers pitch black with charcoal but still moving steadily. He's always hated people interrupting him while he's painting, no matter who they are.

 

Instead, Kaminaga just lays in bed, waiting for Miyoshi to finish his night routine. He stares at the ceiling, hands folded and eyes bleary. It's almost like that time Hatano told him his Emma theory -- that Amari kidnapped Emma -- which he automatically rejected, but ended up spending a good part of the night discussing it with Miyoshi. Or rather, _to_ Miyoshi. He was kicked out the room that night for "disrupting his eight hours." Kaminaga hopes Miyoshi doesn't kick him out again. On the chance that he does, it probably won't be so bad since he has Emma now and maybe he can ask her how she ended up with a man like Amari.

 

Finally, Miyoshi slides into bed, snapping him out of his thoughts.

 

"Hey, babe."

 

Miyoshi raises an eyebrow, his eyes daring him to cross him. One would think that the sheet mask would make him less intimidating, but _no_. Kaminaga laughs nervously.

 

"So funny story about work today," he says, and he braces himself for whatever's gonna happen. "I thought Emma would behave at work today, right? And for the most part, she did. But you know what happened?"

 

"What?" Miyoshi asks, deciding to humor him.

 

"She snuck into some of the pictures. It was crazy. I didn't even realize she'd done it until I was editing them."

 

"Is that so?"

 

"Mhm and well, I scolded her. I told her that what she did was wrong. And then I told her that if she couldn't behave, she'd have to stay here with you."

 

Miyoshi's face is blank.

 

"And she was all like 'Okay~!' and now... well, she, uh... she wants to stay with you."

 

He's pretty sure Miyoshi's soul has left his body by now, but he waits one minute, two minutes, three --

 

"...Why are you like this?"

 

"I was born like this!"

 

Miyoshi rolls his eyes.

 

"You said you'd take care of her the whole time."

 

"Things happen and -- hey, don't look at me like that! Just hear me out!"

 

Miyoshi crosses his arms but says nothing more.

 

"It's not a huge space and she's just sitting there and playing on her iPad. She gets bored, you know? At least here she'll have more freedom. Just lay down some rules and you'll be fine."

 

"I really have to work on this painting. The commissioner wants it by Wednesday."

 

"I know, I know, okay? How about I'll do anything for you if you agree to do it."

 

The animosity from Miyoshi simmers down.

 

"Anything?"

 

"Anything."

 

"Like give me a foot rub every night?"

 

"Yeah."

 

"Clean the house for the rest of the year?"

 

"Yeah."

 

"Harakiri?"

 

"...I pay half the rent."

 

"Fair enough."

 

They chuckle.

 

"So you'll do it?"

 

Miyoshi curls up beside him.

 

"I suppose it can't be helped."

 

Kaminaga pulls him closer.

 

"You're the best, you know that?"

 

"Of course I do."

 

 

* * *

 

 

By the time Kaminaga leaves for work, Emma's already awake. He's still unsure about the whole thing, but Miyoshi listens to Kaminaga's advice for once. He prepares some food for her, shows her how to use the microwave, and gives her some rules to follow ("Don't make loud noises. Don't bother me unless it's an emergency."). With that done, he sets her in front of the TV and seeing that she won't start bouncing around the room, returns to his painting.

 

It's about midday when Miyoshi notices his charcoal's running low. He figures now is a good time for a break, so he cleans his hands and admires his work. The commissioner's request is a scene of a train wreck on a cold winter's day, done in charcoal to "bring out the mortality of it." It's rather morbid, he thinks, but he's getting paid good money for it, so he's not complaining.

 

He makes his way to the supply closet, where dozens upon dozens of art tools greet him. It doesn't take him too long to locate the charcoal, but the sound of a crash derails his thoughts and he immediately rushes back to his room.

 

"What happened?!"

 

Standing before him is Emma and an empty easel. His painting lays on the floor, face down. Miyoshi's heart stops.

 

"Um... I passed by and saw the painting and thought it was really pretty. You weren't in the room but I wanted a closer look. It was just gonna be a really quick look..." She avoids looking at his eyes. "Then it fell down."

 

After a moment, Miyoshi remembers to breathe. Quickly, he picks up the painting and it's just as he suspected. Though one could still make out the basic idea of it, everything is smeared or smudged in places they shouldn't be. All it is now is a mess of black streaks, like a grade schooler's first attempt at charcoal drawing.

 

"Who gave you permission to touch this?" He asks, voice cold and stern.

 

"No one..."

 

"So why'd you do it?"

 

"I just wanted a look..." She sniffles. "I-I'm sorry..."

 

Miyoshi's head snaps up. Her hands are curled into tiny balls and they rub her eyes, tears rolling down her cheeks. She keeps her mouth closed, as if to prevent herself from sobbing.

 

He looks between the painting and Emma and sighs. He sets it back onto the easel before crouching down to her.

 

His hands twitch, unfamiliar with the gesture he's about to preform, and sets one on top of her head. Her crying doesn't stop, so he moves his hand back and forth in a way that's not quite ruffling her hair. That does the trick.

 

"Do you like painting?"

 

She nods her head as she dries her tears.

 

"I'll let you paint something, is that okay with you?"

 

She nods her head with more enthusiasm this time.

 

"Come."

 

He holds his hand out and she takes it with little hesitation. He leads her to the living room and sits her down at the table before getting out the acrylics, some paper, and a smock. Her eyes sparkle at the sight of all the supplies.

 

He sets everything up for her, helps her put on the smock (which is much too large for her, but they make it work), and finally she's ready.

 

"Hm... I don't know what to paint."

 

"Why don't you paint something important to you?"

 

"Ah!"

 

Emma grabs a paintbrush and sets off to work. Just as she's about to paint the first stroke, she passes another piece of paper to him.

 

"You should paint too, Uncle Miyoshi."

 

He shrugs and rolls up his sleeves, reaching for a paintbrush.

 

"I don't see why not."

 

Miyoshi's hand moves automatically, the paintbrush gliding across the paper quickly and surely. Every once in a while, he looks up to see how Emma is doing. She's completely enraptured in her own painting, adding bright colors here and there with her tongue sticking out. A small smile makes its way onto his face as he returns to his own work.

 

Soon enough, he finds himself face-to-face with Kaminaga. A painted Kaminaga, that is. It's his best work yet and he doesn't know how to feel about that.

 

"I'm done. Look, look!"

 

On her paper are two humanoid figures holding hands and a black blob surrounded by what he assumes are dolphins and hearts. The background is a rich blue, probably meant to be the sea, and there's a boat in there somewhere. It's not bad for a five year old.

 

"That's you and your Papa, isn't it?" And as he asks, he can't help but think there's some clue to Emma's origins in there. "It's very... unique."

 

"Thank you," she says bashfully.

 

"I'm sure your Papa would love it if you gave it to him."

 

"You think so?"

 

"I know so."

 

"Then I'll give it to Papa when he gets home." She smiles brightly. "What about your painting, Uncle Miyoshi?"

 

She leans over to see it and because he's merciful, he nudges it towards her.

 

"Uwah~! That's so good, Uncle Miyoshi."

 

"Naturally."

 

"So Uncle Kaminaga's your important thing?"

 

"Hm?"

 

"You said to paint what's important to you."

 

Miyoshi holds the painting in his hand, taking it in. Honestly, he hadn't been thinking when he did it. Kaminaga's been in his life for as long as he could remember, the one person who's been constantly there. It's only natural that he's the first one to come to his mind.

 

"He's important to me, yeah. Very important."

 

"Just like how Papa and Frate are important to me?"

 

"Sort of like that."

 

Silence. Then, "Will you teach me how to paint like you?"

 

He looks at her, and he finds that he's actually considering it.

 

"Not now --" She frowns "-- but maybe when you're older."

 

"Then I'm gonna get older really quickly!"

 

Despite himself, he laughs.

 

"You do that."

 

-

 

Kaminaga returns home to see Miyoshi working double time on a new canvas.

 

"What happened?"

 

"It fell so now I have to redo it," Miyoshi says, not once breaking his concentration.

 

Kaminaga hisses as if he's the one who fell down.

 

"Damn. That sucks."

 

Miyoshi grunts and that's the end of that conversation.

 

Setting his stuff down, Kaminaga's eyes drift over to the bedside drawer and sees a painting. He whistles, nice and low.

 

"Who's this handsome devil?" He asks, holding it next to his face.

 

Miyoshi glances at him before returning to his work.

 

"I don't know. I saw him in a dream."

 

"Really now?"

 

"Yeah. It was pretty nice. He was a lot less annoying than the boyfriend I have in reality."

 

He fake gasps.

 

"You wound me."

 

"The first aid kit is in the bathroom if you want to fix your broken ego."

 

"I think the only thing that can fix it at this point is a kiss~"

 

"That's unfortunate."

 

Kaminaga pouts, but it's pointless because Miyoshi isn't even looking at him. Taking it upon himself, he carefully wraps his arms around Miyoshi's waist and watches Miyoshi's fingers dance across the canvas.

 

"It's her fault it happened," Miyoshi says. Though the words themselves are accusatory, he says them casually.

 

"Hm?"

 

"Emma. She came into the room and touched my painting, then it fell down. That's four days worth of work gone to waste."

 

"Uh-huh... Then what?"

 

"I yelled at her and she cried. But not like that annoying, high-pitched kind of cry, thank God."

 

"Oh?" Kaminaga almost doesn't want to hear what happens next.

 

"I let her paint something afterwards. She seemed pretty happy with that." Then as an afterthought he adds, "She made me paint too."

 

That isn't how Kaminaga expects it to end, but that explains the portrait of him. They stay like that for a couple of moments, Kaminaga holding Miyoshi while he works, until Kaminaga speaks up.

 

"You like Emma, don't you?"

 

"She's better than I originally thought."

 

"So that's a 'yes.'"

 

"I never said that," Miyoshi says, his motions becoming more aggressive.

 

It's about a good a confirmation as it gets, so Kaminaga grins and kisses the temple of Miyoshi's head.

 

"Sure you didn't."

 

* * *

 

Miyoshi feels better about the second day he has with Emma. It starts similarly to yesterday, but there's less distance between them now, figuratively and literally. She asks to watch him work and he lets her so as long as she stays put. She sits quietly at his vanity with her tablet in hand. Maybe it's not so bad having her around.

 

"What's this, Uncle Miyoshi?" She asks after some time.

 

He looks at her and she's staring at all the beauty products that rest on the vanity.

 

"Makeup."

 

"Makeup?" Her nose scrunches up before her eyes widen. "Oh, makeup! The thing that makes you pretty." She turns to him, bouncing in her seat. "Can I try? We don't have this at home."

 

His first instinct is to literally throw her out the room but he knows that's not a good idea (well, it's not the most morally correct idea). He opens his mouth to tell her "No, now pipe down," but the words are stuck in his throat. He can't say it when her eyes are all wide and sparkly and pleading. _That's evil_ , he thinks, but he respects her more now. At least she knows how to use her looks to her advantage.

 

"Okay," he says, putting down his charcoal. "But let me help you."

 

He makes sure his painting is secure and cleans his hands. Done with that, he sits next to her and takes everything out. If she was excited over paints yesterday, she's completely ecstatic about makeup today.

 

"I'll show you how to do it first. But you have to stay still, all right?"

 

She nods and her bouncing stops. He takes a breath. This will be fine, he tells himself, completely fine. Picking up a bottle, he shows it to her.

 

"This is primer," he starts and the whole thing becomes a makeup lesson. Emma listens eagerly throughout his explanation, jumping in every now and then to ask a question. She even tries them out herself, but for the most part Miyoshi applies the makeup on her since her hands are unsteady. By the end of it, he's given her a complete makeover.

 

"Wow!" She leans into the vanity, her face nearly pressed against mirror. He holds her back because he just spent an hour on her and dammit, she looks good. "I'm so pretty!"

 

"Very pretty indeed." _But not as pretty as me_ , he thinks. Even then, he can't help but smile as she admires herself. Then she turns to him, a huge grin on her face.

 

"Uncle Miyoshi, I'll give you a makeover too."

 

His heart stops for the second time within twenty-four hours and he looks at the mirror. All he sees is a dead man.

 

"Uncle Miyoshi?"

 

His eyes dart to her. "No," he wants to say, yell, scream, shout, whatever synonym thereof. But he can't bring himself to do so, not when she's looking at him like he's the greatest thing in the universe (which he is, by the way).

 

"All right," he forces himself to say and immediately she beams. "Let's see what you can do."

 

-

 

"I'm home!" Kaminaga yells out as he puts his shoes away.

 

He hears the pitter patter of footsteps.

 

"Welcome home, Uncle Kaminaga!"

 

"Wow~" Emma is far too adorable for her own good, as she stands in front of him, arms outstretched. Smokey purples he recognizes from Miyoshi's palette cover her eyes, which are winged with black eyeliner, making her blue eyes pop. Her cheeks are dusted with pink blush and gloss shimmers on her lips. "Who's this beautiful girl?"

 

She giggles.

 

"It's me, Emma!"

 

"Eh~ I almost didn't recognize you."

 

"Uncle Miyoshi gave me a makeover," she says proudly.  

 

"And it looks amazing! Where is Uncle Miyoshi anyways?"

 

"In the bedroom. I did his makeup too!" Emma takes his hand and tugs it. "Come, come. I'll show you."

 

He gladly follows her. He's _gotta_ see this.

 

"Uncle Miyoshi, Uncle Kaminaga is here." She says as they enter the room.

 

Sure enough, there's Miyoshi. He sits at the vanity hunched over with his head buried in his hands, blocking the view of his face. It reminds Kaminaga of a hungover Odagiri, but somehow worse.

 

"Hey, babe~"

 

His response is a muffled "Welcome home."

 

"Are you okay, Uncle Miyoshi?"

 

"Yes, just." He sighs. "Just give me a moment."

 

Ever so slowly, his head rises and a snort escapes Kaminaga.

 

"Isn't he pretty, Uncle Kaminaga?" Emma looks at him earnestly but he doesn't trust himself to speak so he nods, laughter bubbling up inside him.

 

Miyoshi glares at him through clumpy eyelashes, but it does nothing to help him. His eyeshadow is a mix of gold and green and even though it's haphazardly put on, he pulls it off. There are black lines stretching from his eyes, presumably from Emma's attempt at doing winged eyeliner. His usually pale face is a rosy pink and Kaminaga's not sure if it's the blush or if _he's_ blushing or it's some kind of mix of both. His already red lips are redder, accenting his pout.

 

The camera in his bag calls to him and Kaminaga listens.

 

"We --" He snickers. "-- We should take a picture."

 

"Yay, a picture!

 

"No!"

 

Kaminaga and Emma look at Miyoshi, who turns away almost _shyly._ He coughs to cover up his outburst.

 

"I mean no _,_ I don't want my picture taken. But you can get some of Emma."

 

"But you always want your picture taken," Kaminaga says. He doesn't even bother to hide his amusement.

 

"I've decided to be humble for a day."

 

"Just one picture."

 

"No."

 

"You don't even have to see it."

 

"I'd rather not."

 

"Please, Uncle Miyoshi?"

 

They look at Emma and there are the puppy dog eyes. He's not even the target of them, but Kaminaga feels weak in the knees. Those eyes are too powerful.

 

Miyoshi is silent before letting out a sigh.

 

"Just one. No more than that."

 

"Yay!" The puppy dog eyes are gone and she runs over to him. "Come on, Uncle Kaminaga."

 

"All right, all right." He grins as he takes out his camera.

 

"Ready? Three... two... one --" _Click!_

 

-

 

"I think I'll print this one out. I'll frame it and hang it right next to the painting of me," Kaminaga says later when they're both in bed. Miyoshi lays next to him as he goes through the pictures he took earlier. He's already sent Amari the ones he took of Emma (and to say he was delighted is an understatement), but the one with Miyoshi is for his eyes only.

 

"If you do that, I'll kill you. I'll ask Jitsui for tips on how to make it as painful as possible."

 

"Then all I ask is that you bury me with this."

 

Miyoshi rolls over to his side.

 

"I hate you."

 

Kaminaga sets the camera down and turns the lamp off. As he settles into bed, he wraps his arms around Miyoshi, who curls up against him. Miyoshi's face presses against his chest and their legs tangle up together. Kaminaga strokes Miyoshi's hair, and he feels Miyoshi's content sigh on his skin.

 

"I love you, too."

 

* * *

 

Sunday morning arrives and the two of them go about it as they usually do, Kaminaga preparing for work and Miyoshi going through his morning routine.

 

"Why don't we go out later?" Kaminaga asks as he finishes putting his clothes on.

 

"What do you mean?"

 

"I get out early, so we should take Emma out. It'll be like a date."

 

Miyoshi scoffs.

 

"It's not a date if there's a child tagging along."

 

"Family outing?"

 

Miyoshi shoots him a glare through the mirror.

 

"Kidding, kidding. It's been a while since we've gone out though. Like for fun."

 

"What did you have in mind?"

 

"I'm not sure. I was gonna ask Emma where she wanted to go."

 

Instead of responding, Miyoshi removes his sheet mask and begins applying his makeup. Kaminaga watches him go through the motions as diligently as ever from the edge of their bed. He sees this every morning, but it's something he never grows tired of.

 

"As long as we don't stay out too late," Miyoshi finally says. He ignores the reflection of Kaminaga's grin in the mirror.

 

-

 

Emma decides on going to the aquarium and neither of them see a problem with it, so the aquarium they go. It doesn't take too long and as soon as they get there, Emma shakes with excitement.

 

"Don't go off too far, okay?"

 

"Yes, Uncle Kaminaga!" And she runs off to the fish tanks.

 

They stroll leisurely behind her hand-in-hand, keeping their distance but also making sure she's still in their sight. As they visit the different exhibits, Emma calls for them and points excitedly at whatever's in the tank. Every now and then, Kaminaga whips out his camera and takes pictures of her to send to Amari. He even gets some of him and Miyoshi (and this time, Miyoshi is a lot more willing).

 

"This is nice," he says as they sit on a bench. Emma watches the penguins nearby. "It kinda takes me back, you know?"

 

"No?"

 

"Like the aquarium date."

 

Miyoshi blinks slowly.

 

"Kaminaga." He takes a deep breath. "We've never been on a date to the aquarium."

 

"What?" His eyebrows furrow as he thinks back on it. Then, "Oh. Yeah. That wasn't... that was..."

 

The look on Miyoshi's face dares him to continue.

 

"Uncle Kaminaga! Uncle Miyoshi!"

 

Kaminaga thanks whatever gods there are for Emma.

 

"What's up, kiddo?"

 

"Can we go to the store?" For extra measure, she points towards it.

 

"All right. You go on ahead. We'll catch up, yeah?"

 

"Okay!"

 

After she skips off, Kaminaga stands up and tries to stretch, but Miyoshi's hand is still holding onto his. Slowly, Miyoshi stands up as well, his grip on his hand tighter.  

 

"You're not jealous, are you?" He pulls Miyoshi closer to him, and his words low and tender.  "It happened years ago. I barely even remember her."

 

Miyoshi's thumb runs across his hand, back and forth in a circular motion. He doesn't meet his eyes, but his grip loosens and he entwines their fingers together.

 

"From now on, you associate aquariums with me."

 

"All right, but I was thinking aquariums are more of Emma's thing."

 

Though he rolls his eyes, the tension in his posture lessens.

 

"Miyoshi."

 

He looks up at him and Kaminaga cups his face with his free hand. They gaze at each other before Kaminaga presses a kiss against Miyoshi's lips, which he reciprocates. He wants it to last longer, to deepen it, but Miyoshi breaks it off. He licks his lips before speaking.

 

"Emma's waiting for us," Miyoshi says and drags them to the store.

 

Once they're there, they easily spot Emma over where the stuffed animals are. There's already one in her arms and she's still searching for more.

 

"Emma!" Kaminaga calls out to her.

 

Her head snaps in her direction and when she sees them, she grins.

 

"Did you find something you like?" He asks as they approach her.

 

"Yep!" She shows off the plushie she's holding. It's a dolphin, and there's two of them actually. The smaller one is attached to the larger one somehow, but they form a pair. "I'm gonna give it to Papa."

 

"How cute! I think your Papa will really like it."

 

She nods and her attention goes back to the shelves.

 

"I'm still looking for something else."

 

"Do you need help?"

 

"No! I wanna do it myself."

 

She's very adamant about it and Kaminaga can't help but find her determinedness adorable.

 

"Well, Uncle Miyoshi and I will be around if you need us."

 

"Okay," she says and resumes her search.

 

After about fifteen minutes of going through the store and listening to Miyoshi's comments on how cheap everything is, Emma runs up to them with two new stuffed animals in her arms. Fortunately, they don't cost a crazy amount, so Kaminaga pays for them. Once they've left the store, Emma makes them stop and digs up the toys from the plastic bag.

 

In Kaminaga's direction, she shoves a stuffed sea otter holding a clam shell.

 

"This is for you, Uncle Kaminaga! It reminded me of you."

 

"Wow~! Thank you." He holds it to his chest. "I'll treasure it."

 

She giggles before turning to Miyoshi and handing him a sea lion plushie.

 

"This one's for you, Uncle Miyoshi. It's pretty just like you!"

 

He doesn't take it immediately. But when he does, he looks at it for a moment, his face unreadable. Then he looks back at her and smiles.

 

"Thank you, Emma."

 

"Did you have fun today, kiddo?" Kaminaga asks.

 

"Yeah, lots of fun!" And she goes off talking about all the things she's seen today. Kaminaga takes one of her hands and Miyoshi takes the other, and together they leave the aquarium.

 

-

 

That night, the sea otter and sea lion sit side-by-side on the bedside drawer. In bed, Miyoshi rests his head on Kaminaga's chest while Kaminaga holds him close. It's late and Amari will be there early, but both of them lay awake.

 

"I can't believe Emma's leaving tomorrow."

 

"You make it sound like you're never going to see her again."

 

"It's different though. Like I finally understand why Amari dotes on her so much."

 

Miyoshi hums in response.

 

"You're gonna miss her too, aren't you?"

 

"I won't." Miyoshi pauses. "But it was... interesting having her around."

 

"So basically 'yes.'''

 

Kaminaga receives a light slap to his cheek.

 

"Go to sleep."

 

"Love you too, babe."

 

* * *

 

Emma waits patiently for Amari on the couch, her legs kicking back and forth. Kaminaga and Miyoshi sit on either side of her, neither of them quite awake yet. Miyoshi, in particular, is a mess because he had to condense his routine into 30 minutes. Kaminaga doesn't comment on it and Emma is wise enough to not point out any of his imperfections.

 

It's five o' clock when the bell rings and Emma hops up and runs straight to the door. Kaminaga follows her albeit groggily. Miyoshi picks his head up from the couch.

 

"Papa!" Emma shouts as soon as the door is open. She jumps straight into Amari's arms. "I've missed you."

 

"I've missed you too, Emma."

 

"Yo, Amari."

 

"Ah, good morning! Sorry to bother you guys so early."

 

"No biggie." Kaminaga gives back Amari her belongings. "It's good to see you again."

 

"How was the trip?" Miyoshi asks, joining them at the door.

 

"It went well! The negotiations went by smoothly."

 

"That's good to hear."

 

"So how was Emma?" In his arms, she's the image of pure innocence. "Did she behave?"

 

Kaminaga and Miyoshi look at each and share a smile.

 

"She was good," Kaminaga says. "There wasn't a lot of problems, but it sure wasn't dull with her around."

 

"Is that true, Emma?"

 

"Yes, Papa!"

 

"I'm glad to hear that."

 

"You've raised her well," Miyoshi says and both Kaminaga and Amari stare at him. Despite his tiredness, Miyoshi has a soft expression on his face. Amari's the first to break out of his stupor.

 

"Thank you. It's good to know I'm doing something right with her."

 

"Yeah, because you're the best papa ever!"

 

He chuckles and adjusts his hold on her.

 

"We have to get going now. Emma, what do you say to Uncle Kaminaga and Uncle Miyoshi?"

 

"Thank you, Uncle Kaminaga! Thank you, Uncle Miyoshi! Bye bye!"

 

They wave goodbye to them and watch as they leave. Emma's chattering fills the hallway until they step into the elevator and suddenly all is silent. Kaminaga closes the door and the two of them stand there, taking in how empty it is without her. Then, Kaminaga turns to Miyoshi.

 

"Maybe we should have kids --"

 

"Get out."  


**Author's Note:**

> kaminaga slept on the couch that night (jk)
> 
> aah I hope this was all right!! I had a lot of fun writing this lol this is probably the most self-indulgent thing I've ever written. this is also the longest thing I've ever written. #priorities
> 
> anyways, thank you again for reading!! Hope you have a good day/night~! (=ﾟωﾟ)ﾉ


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